Prayer Thoughts for the Heart

Archive for February, 2009

I grew up in a small town, Pell City, Alabama, about 30 miles East of Birmingham. I was the oldest of three daughters. Most every Sunday we went to church and my grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins were there too. After church we would go to my grandparent’s home for dinner and then enjoy an afternoon of fun. I have been a Christian since I was 13 years old.

I moved to Birmingham when I graduated from high school and went to work for Liberty Mutual Insurance Company. It so happened that my future husband lived right across the street. His mother introduced us. We dated for about 18 months, got engaged and married, April 19, 1953.

Our first son was born in 1955 and our second son came along in 1959. We now have grandchildren and great grandchildren, Oh what a joy they are. We are a close family.

The company my husband worked for transferred us from our home in Birmingham, then to Cincinnati in 1957; to Youngstown in 1964; to Richmond, VA in 1968 and to Strongsville, OH in 1976. It makes me tired just thinking about it.

As we moved around the country I would get involed in the nearby church. I have been a Sunday School Teacher, Vacation Bible School Teacher, Women’s Ministry Leader and Prayer Chairman. When I was the Prayer Chairman, in the early 1990’s, I wrote a very short prayer thought for the Sunday Church Bulletin. About 12 years later I decided to make each prayer thought a little longer and put them into a Prayer Journal. This took several years.

After my husband had heart surgery and then 5 years of disability he passed away in 1991. During this time I let God mature inside me instead of being bitter. I would recite this scipture to myself in hard times “…for the joy of the Lord is your strength” Nehemiah 8:10 NIV).

My book, “Prayer Thoughts for the Heart”, was published September 20, 2007. I hope you you get a chance to read it. It was a very rewarding experience and I got to reminisce as I re-read the prayers thoughts getting them ready for print.

Celia Milam
The author of “Prayer Thoughts for the Heart”” Praying, Learning and Obeying,
This Prayer Journal and Devotional Guide will help us in growing and maturing as a Christian.

Prayer Thought:

Paul writes to the church at Philippi that his prayer for them is that their love will abound more and more in knowledge and insight. This is for us today, also. To abound in love means that it becomes more a part of us. That it shows up in our actions and reactions.

Love must keep on growing, because we never fully mature in love. Growing means that every time we learn something, we are to bring it into our mind and add it to what we already know.

Life is a classroom and the growth of knowledge takes place by love. What you learn must be filtered through the Word of God.

All this to say that Christian Love will make the best decisions for us. This kind is not silly, immature love, but the love of Christ flowing through us.

In your prayer time, ask God to help you be more aware of His love and the need to grow more mature in His love. Practice makes one more loving.

“And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ”

(Philippians 1:9-10 NIV).

Celia Milam
The author of “Prayer Thoughts for the Heart”” Praying, Learning and Obeying, This Prayer Journal and Devotional Guide will help us in growing and maturing as a Christian.

Prayer Thought:

LOVE makes the world go around, and when you think about it, that’s the only fuel to do the job.

GOD IS LOVE. LOVE gives and LOVE forgives. LOVE sacrifices
And LOVE serves. LOVE is mercy and LOVE is grace.

LOVE is compassion and LOVE is caring. LOVE is thankfulness
And LOVE is the Cross.

God LOVES us, not because of who we are, but because of who
He is. LOVE and LOVE some more, LOVE and LOVE some more
your brother. LOVE puts LOVE into action. LOVE puts the heart in
LOVE.

Are you a part of the CHAIN OF LOVE? As Believers we are a link
in the chain of LOVE that goes from God to others.

“And we have known and believed the LOVE that God hath to us,
GOD IS LOVE; and he that dwelleth in LOVE dwelleth in God, and
God in him”

(1 John 4:16).

Celia Milam
The author of “Prayer Thoughts for the Heart”” Praying, Learning and Obeying, This Prayer Journal and Devotional Guide will help us in growing and maturing as a Christian.